Belize City, 17th March, 2017: The Belize Training and Employment Centre (BTEC), a unit of BELTRAIDE, is Belize’s leading centre for industry specific workforce development, providing effective, demand driven, user-friendly and value based programs that will develop, deliver and sustain a quality work force. Its’ mission is to develop a cadre of well-trained, marketable and self-sufficient individuals able to confidently compete in the marketplace.
In keeping with its mandate, thirty nine persons, who are employed or seeking employment as caregivers in homes of the elderly or in assisted living facilities, received certificates at the conclusion of a five-week training on Basics of Caregiving during a brief ceremony was held on Friday, 17th March 2017 at 11:00 am at the Belize Training and Employment Centre (BTEC) on the ITVET Compound, Freetown Road, Belize City.
BTEC signed an MOU with Sister Cecilia’s Home for the Elderly and the National Council on Ageing (NCA) in October 2015, two key strategic partners for the implementation of the Basics of Care-giving training. This training is geared towards persons who will be working for and on behalf of older persons. The objectives of the trainings are: to promote a safe environment that will enhance health and wellness for older persons, develop skills to care for older persons and to create a cadre of trained care givers.
The training has three components: theory, first aid and CPR and two-week internship at the Sister Cecilia’s Home for the Elderly. The training seeks to certify persons who have a passion for working with older persons either new entrant into the field or persons who are working but have had no formal training.
In December of 2016, the National Council on Ageing received funding from Belize Natural Energy Trust (BNET) to execute three (3) Basics of Care-giving trainings. The overall objective of the training proposal is to improve the quality of life of older persons living in institutions through the training and certification of 80 caregivers in 2017. BTEC and NCA started recruitment for the first training in January 2017, a record number of persons signed up and thirty-nine persons have successfully completed the five week training program.
The second round of training will be in Belmopan at the George Price Centre starting from March 20th – April 28th, 2017.
